U.S. patent application number 13/352207 was filed with the patent office on 2012-07-19 for automotive repair warranty and recall tracking.
This patent application is currently assigned to Autovation, Inc.. Invention is credited to David Draper.
Application Number | 20120185399 13/352207 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 46491521 |
Filed Date | 2012-07-19 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120185399 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Draper; David |
July 19, 2012 |
AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR WARRANTY AND RECALL TRACKING
Abstract
Methods for notifying customers of vehicle recall notices are
disclosed, including a passive method where vehicles brought to a
service station are processed, and an active method where mailings
are generated to vehicle owners. Based upon the provided vehicle
identification number in a repair order or in a customer list, a
manufacturer recall database is queried with a recall campaign
retrieval request. Vehicle recall notices are transmitted and
received in response, with some vehicles being subject to
outstanding recall campaigns identified therein. One or more
corrective maintenance services are associated with the vehicle
recall notices. An alert notification or the mailings to the
customers including the recall notification are generated.
Inventors: |
Draper; David; (San Juan
Cpistrano, CA) |
Assignee: |
Autovation, Inc.
San Juan Capistrano
CA
|
Family ID: |
46491521 |
Appl. No.: |
13/352207 |
Filed: |
January 17, 2012 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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61433801 |
Jan 18, 2011 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/303 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 10/08 20130101;
G06Q 10/00 20130101; G06Q 50/30 20130101; G06Q 30/014 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/303 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 10/00 20120101
G06Q010/00 |
Claims
1. A method for tracking manufacturer recall notices of vehicles,
the method comprising: receiving a repair order with an associated
vehicle identification number corresponding to a specific one of
the vehicles for which one or more maintenance services are
assigned, and an itemization of the assigned maintenance services;
transmitting to a manufacturer recall database a recall campaign
retrieval request including the unique vehicle identification
number; receiving one or more vehicle recall notices from the
manufacturer recall database generated in response to the recall
campaign retrieval request, the specific one of the vehicles being
subject to one or more outstanding recall campaigns as identified
by the respective vehicle recall notices, one or more corrective
maintenance services being associated with the vehicle recall
notices; and generating an alert notification in response to an
evaluated omission of the one or more corrective maintenance
services from the assigned maintenance services itemized on the
repair order.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: adding the one or
more corrective maintenance services to the repair order.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the alert notification includes
an itemization of the corrective maintenance services associated
with each of the one or more outstanding recall campaigns.
4. The method of claim 3, further comprising: receiving a first set
of instruction inputs to add the corrective maintenance services to
the repair order.
5. The method of claim 3, further comprising: receiving a second
set of instruction inputs to skip adding the corrective maintenance
services to the repair order.
6. The method of claim 5, further comprising: receiving opt-out
reasons for at least one of the corrective maintenance services
omitted from the repair order; storing the opt-out reason in a
report database in association with the repair order and the
vehicle identification number.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the repair order is generated and
stored on a remote dealer management system.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the repair order is received in
response to a remote query therefor, the repair order being one of
a plurality of repair orders stored on the remote dealer management
system.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the remote query is for
retrieving each of the plurality of open repair orders stored on
the remote dealer management system.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the remote query is initiated on
a periodic basis.
11. The method of claim 7, wherein the corrective maintenance
services are represented by opcodes.
12. The method of claim 7, wherein the alert notification is a
message generated through the dealer management system.
13. The method of claim 7, wherein the alert notification is an
e-mail message.
14. A method for generating notifications of recalls of products to
customers, the method comprising: receiving a customer list, each
customer listed therein being associated with a unique product
identifier and a set of customer contact data, the unique product
identifier corresponding to a specific one of the products in
possession by the specific one of the customers; transmitting to a
manufacturer recall database a recall campaign retrieval request
including the unique product identifier for at least one of the
customers from the customer list; receiving one or more recall
notices from the manufacturer recall database generated in response
to the recall campaign retrieval request, the products being
subject to one or more outstanding recall campaigns as identified
by the respective recall notices and having associated therewith
one or more corrective actions; and storing in a recall
notification list the recall notices and the one or more corrective
actions for each of the customers for which the recall campaign
retrieval request was transmitted, the customers being identified
by the respective sets of customer contact data.
15. The method of claim 14, further comprising: grouping the recall
notices according to the customers by the unique product
identifier.
16. The method of claim 14, wherein: the product is a vehicle; and
the unique product identifier is a vehicle identification number
(VIN).
17. The method of claim 14, further comprising: generating contacts
to at least one of the customers stored in the recall notification
list from the associated set of customer contact data.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein the contact is a mailing
including the recall notices and the one or more corrective
actions.
19. The method of claim 17, wherein the contact is an e-mail
including the recall notices and the one or more corrective
actions.
20. The method of claim 17, wherein the contact is a telephone call
describing the recall notices and the one or more corrective
actions.
21. The method of claim 14, wherein the recall notification list is
the customer list merged with the recall notices and the one or
more corrective actions.
22. A non-transitory computer readable medium having
computer-executable instructions for performing a method for
tracking manufacturer recall notices of vehicles, the method
comprising: receiving a repair order with an associated vehicle
identification number corresponding to a specific one of the
vehicles for which one or more maintenance services are assigned,
and an itemization of the assigned maintenance services;
transmitting to a manufacturer recall database a recall campaign
retrieval request including the unique vehicle identification
number; receiving one or more vehicle recall notices from the
manufacturer recall database generated in response to the recall
campaign retrieval request, the specific one of the vehicles being
subject to one or more outstanding recall campaigns as identified
by the respective vehicle recall notices and having associated
therewith one or more corrective maintenance services; and
generating an alert notification in response to an evaluated
omission of the one or more corrective maintenance services from
the assigned maintenance services itemized on the repair order.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application relates to and claims the benefit of U.S.
Provisional Patent Application No. 61/433,801 filed Jan. 18, 2011
and entitled METHOD FOR TRACKING AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR AND WARRANTY
SERVICES, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by
reference.
STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENT
[0002] Not Applicable
BACKGROUND
[0003] 1. Technical Field
[0004] The present disclosure relates generally to information
management in the automotive industry. More particularly, the
present disclosure relates to systems and methods for automotive
repair, warranty, and recall tracking.
[0005] 2. Related Art
[0006] Automobiles permeate virtually every aspect of daily life in
most developed countries except for the few major cities with
robust public transportation systems, and are relied upon for going
to and from work, school, shopping, leisure activities and
countless other destinations. By some estimates, there are around
600 million automobiles in service worldwide, with various
manufacturers producing a total of some 70 million units annually.
Over its development history, automobiles have evolved from basic
machines comprised of little more than wheels and a propulsion
source on a frame to sophisticated systems with numerous features
that improve safety, efficiency, driving experience, and passenger
comfort.
[0007] Inherent in many technological advances is the increased
risk of harm to its users. For instance, an increase in the power
of the engine may have the benefit of a higher attainable speed
such that drivers can reach the intended destination more quickly,
but with such increases in speed, the risk of significant bodily
injury in a crash is much greater. Partially to counter the
heightened safety risk associated with higher speeds, improvements
in braking systems have been developed, for example, as well as
improvements in frame and body designs for absorbing impact shocks,
improvements in restraint systems such as seatbelts and airbags,
and so forth. This is but one example of the progression of the
features of the automobile, and numerous other subsystems and
components have been added and improved upon over time.
[0008] As the features in automobiles increase, however, its
complexity grows along with an increase in the number of potential
failure points, some of which can be catastrophic during operation.
Furthermore, seemingly unrelated components can cause failures in
other components, and this is particularly so because conventional
automobiles employ electronics and computer systems for much of the
functionality. Due to faulty or incomplete programming, data
corruption from one set of inputs for one subsystem has the
potential to propagate to other subsystems, affecting the overall
reliability of the vehicle. In addition to the traditional
mechanical issues that may affect safety and reliability, with
modern automobiles there is an added challenge in attempting to
identify problems that may surface sporadically only under specific
environmental and operational conditions.
[0009] Any manufacturer of a product, including manufacturers of
automobiles, performs extensive design reviews and testing at
multiple organizational levels to ensure that defects are
eliminated before the products are sold to the consumer. However,
due to limited time and resources, some problems inevitably remain.
As mentioned above, the likelihood of hidden issues increases with
greater complexity and concomitant failure points as existing in
modern automobiles. The problems may range from minor issues that
have little to no effect on the safe operation, to major design
defects that permeate the entirety of the vehicle.
[0010] The design of the particular automobile and/or its
individual subcomponents may be sound, but problems may be rooted
in the manufacturing process. Improvements in manufacturing are
constantly sought throughout the product lifecycle for increases in
efficiency, cost reduction, and environmental cleanliness, among
other reasons. From time to time, different processes may be
substituted, with some that introduce defects into the finished
product. Accordingly, the hidden issues may arise only in certain
product lots. In some cases where the failure lies in the entire
manufacturing process, the entire production run may be plagued
with the same issues.
[0011] Upon discovery of the defects, whether initially made by the
manufacturer, by consumers, or by non-manufacturer service
personnel, depending on its severity, the manufacturer may initiate
a recall campaign. Product recalls are intended to limit liability
for corporate negligence, as well as improve or prevent damage to
the corporate image, and may be conducted voluntarily by the
manufacturer. In some jurisdictions, recalls may be legally
mandated, with failure to initiate a recall being grounds for
substantial penalty assessments. Various correction options are
available again depending on the severity of the problem, from
product replacements, free repairs and/or parts, or outright
refunds.
[0012] Running a recall campaign is expensive, largely due to the
costs associated with replacements, repairs and parts. The
management of the campaign and notifying affected customers is also
expensive. Presently, recall notices are sent to applicable
government agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission or the
respective States' consumer protection offices. The notices specify
which specific products are affected, as well as lot numbers and/or
serial numbers thereof may be included, and are made available for
viewing by the purchasing public. Further, specific notices to the
affected customers may be sent by mailings addressed to the
customers' last known addresses, or via phone calls if such
information was collected by the manufacturer at the time of the
initial purchase. Where the discovered problems are severe enough,
they may be reported by the news media. For automobiles, because
vehicles typically require periodic maintenance, recall notices may
be posted for service managers and technicians for when the
customer has such maintenance work performed.
[0013] Unfortunately, existing recall notification practices are
deficient in many ways. To some extent, the manufacturer may be
incentivized not to follow through on recall campaigns and do the
minimum required under the law because of the aforementioned costs,
so long as the problem is rarely encountered or not severe. Even
when the defects result in catastrophic outcomes, manufacturers may
simplify the problem to a cost-benefit analysis between the costs
of the recall campaign and any possible settlement exposure based
upon a quantified probability of such outcome materializing. The
mailing information may be outdated, if it was even collected in
the first place. Depending on the media to publicize the campaign
is also problematic because most problems do not receive widespread
and pervasive coverage, and like the mailings, may nevertheless be
ignored. Posting the recall notices at repair and maintenance
facilities depends on the diligence of individual service managers
and technicians, who may often overlook them because of the large
number and models of vehicles they handle, with each potentially
being subject to multiple recall campaigns at any given time.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved information
management systems and methods for automotive repair, warranty, and
recall tracking.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0014] The present disclosure contemplates various methods for
notifying customers of vehicle recall notices, with one embodiment
being directed to a passive notification system in which a vehicle
brought to a service station is automatically checked for
outstanding recall campaigns. This embodiment begins with a step of
receiving a repair order with an associated vehicle identification
number that may correspond to a specific one of the vehicles for
which one or more such maintenance services are assigned. The
repair order may include an itemization of the assigned maintenance
services. The method may then continue with transmitting to a
manufacturer recall database a recall campaign retrieval request.
This request may include the unique vehicle identification number.
Thereafter, the method continues with receiving one or more vehicle
recall notices from the manufacturer recall database. The vehicle
recall notices may be generated in response to the recall campaign
retrieval request, and the specific one of the vehicles may also be
subject to one or more outstanding recall campaigns as identified
by the respective vehicle recall notices. One or more corrective
maintenance services may be associated with the vehicle recall
notices. The method may continue with generating an alert
notification in response to an evaluated omission of the one or
more corrective maintenance services from the assigned maintenance
services that are itemized on the repair order.
[0015] Another embodiment is directed to generating mailing
campaigns with recall notices from customer lists. The method may
include receiving the customer list. Each customer listed therein
may be associated with a unique product identifier and a set of
customer contact data. The unique product identifier may correspond
to a specific one of the products in possession by the specific one
of the customers. Then, there may be a step of transmitting a
recall campaign retrieval request to a manufacturer recall
database. The recall campaign retrieval request may include the
unique product identifier for at least one of the customers from
the customer list. The method may further include receiving one or
more recall notices from the manufacturer recall database. This
data can be generated in response to the recall campaign retrieval
request. The products may be subject to one or more outstanding
recall campaigns as identified by the respective recall notices,
each of which may be associated with one or more corrective
actions. The method may further include storing the recall notices
and the one or more corrective actions in a recall notification
list. The customers may be identified by the respective sets of
customer contact data. The present disclosure will be best
understood by reference to the following detailed description when
read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] These and other features and advantages of the various
embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood with respect
to the following description and drawings, in which:
[0017] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the components of a
data processing network for implementing the various methods of
tracking recall notices and generating recall notifications in
accordance with the present disclosure;
[0018] FIG. 2 is a table showing an example data structure for a
repair order stored on a dealer management system;
[0019] FIG. 3 is a flowchart of one embodiment of the method of
tracking recall notices;
[0020] FIGS. 4A and 4B are flowcharts of a series of preliminary
operations that are a part of the method of tracking recall
notices;
[0021] FIG. 5 is a screenshot of a user interface to a dealer
management system showing the downloading of reports therefrom in
accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0022] FIG. 6 is a spreadsheet showing the various fields and
corresponding sample values from the downloaded reports;
[0023] FIG. 7 is a screenshot of a manufacturer recall notice
webpage;
[0024] FIG. 8 is an example recall campaign descriptor table;
[0025] FIG. 9 is an example recall campaign alert table;
[0026] FIG. 10 is a screenshot of another aspect of the user
interface of the software application implementing the methods of
tracking recall notices, particularly showing a linking to the
dealer management system messaging functionality in generating
alerts;
[0027] FIG. 11 is a flowchart of one embodiment of the method of
generating recall notifications to customers;
[0028] FIG. 12 illustrates an example customer list data
structure;
[0029] FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the various post-processing
operations performed on a customer recall alert list to prepare the
same for a mailing; and
[0030] FIGS. 14A-14C show a table, in sections, of an example
customer recall alert list generated in accordance with various
embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0031] Common reference numerals are used throughout the drawings
and the detailed description to indicate the same elements.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0032] The detailed description set forth below in connection with
the appended drawings is intended as a description of certain
embodiments of automotive repair warranty and recall tracking, and
is not intended to represent the only forms that may be developed
or utilized. The description sets forth the various functions in
connection with the illustrated embodiments, but it is to be
understood, however, that the same or equivalent functions may be
accomplished by different embodiments that are also intended to be
encompassed within the scope of the present disclosure. It is
further understood that the use of relational terms such as first
and second and the like are used solely to distinguish one entity
from another without necessarily requiring or implying any actual
such relationship or order between such entities.
[0033] With reference to the block diagram of FIG. 1, an exemplary
networked computing environment 10 in which various embodiments of
automotive repair warranty and recall tracking may be implemented
generally involves a dealer 12, a manufacturer 14, and a tracking
provider 16, each of which are interconnected via a network 18. The
present description is in the context of the automobile industry,
where the independent dealer 12 purchases vehicles produced by the
manufacturer 14 and sells them to the consumer public. As another
source of revenue and for maintaining relationships with existing
customers, the dealer 12 typically provides maintenance and repair
services. Furthermore, the dealer 12 can serve in somewhat of a
local representative capacity to the manufacturer 14 in order to
fulfill warranty and recall work, as branding and marketing
nominally associates the dealer 12 to the manufacturer 14.
[0034] The contemplated systems and methods may involve aspects
that are specific to the automobile industry, and various features
are described in relation thereto. It will be understood that the
functional principles disclosed herein are also applicable to other
markets and industries in which an independent dealer sells
products on behalf of the manufacturer. Those having ordinary skill
in the art will recognize the modifications to the various features
disclosed herein pertinent to such alternative markets and
industries.
[0035] In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure,
the dealer 12 may have a dealer management system (DMS) 20 that
handles various information management needs of the business. Such
functions include vehicle inventory management and tracking,
accounting, sales and employee commission tracking, customer
financing calculations and document preparation, parts inventory
management and tracking, repair or vehicle servicing management and
tracking, and appointment scheduling, among many others. There are
several dealer management systems 20 known in the art, and it is
intended that embodiments of the present disclosure may be utilized
in conjunction with any alternatives. Generally, the dealer
management system 20 is comprised of a computer or data processing
server that includes various software modules that implement the
aforementioned functionality and are utilized by dealer staff to
perform various tasks. For purposes of the present disclosure,
since only the vehicle servicing management and tracking
functionalities are utilized, the details of the dealer management
system 20 will be limited thereto.
[0036] There may be a service manager 22 that handles customer
intakes in a typical vehicle servicing department within the dealer
12. For instance, the service manager 22 may interact with a
customer 24 in order to ascertain the desired maintenance and/or
repair services for a vehicle 26. Based upon the information
collected during the intake, the service manager 22 prepares a
repair order 28 via an interactive computer terminal 30 connected
to the dealer management system 20.
[0037] The table of FIG. 2 illustrates one exemplary embodiment of
a data structure of the repair order 28. The specific repair order
28 is uniquely identified within the dealer management system 20
with a repair order number 100 stored in a repair order number
field 28a. It is understood that each vehicle 26 is identified by a
particular vehicle identification number (VIN) 102 stored in a VIN
number field 28b, and is accordingly stored in the repair order 28.
The specific customer 24 is identified by a customer name 104 in a
name field 28c, a contact address 106 stored in an address field
28d, and a phone number 106 stored in a phone number field 28e.
Other information about the customer 24 besides these may also be
included in, or certain ones of those mentioned herein may be
omitted from, the repair order 28. Although the vehicle make,
model, and year can be identified from the vehicle identification
number 102, such information 110 may also be reproduced within the
repair order 28. A dealer service manager identifier 112 may be
included in a field 28g. The selected repair services may be
designated by an opcode 114 stored in a field 28h, along with
identifiers 116 for the parts necessary therefor in a field 28i.
Although the specific repairs are identified by the opcode 114, in
some cases an associated descriptor 118 may also be incorporated
and stored in a descriptor field 28j, to the extent additional
information must be included beyond that provided by a generic
system-wide descriptor provided by the dealer management system 20.
It will be appreciated that any suitable form with relevant
descriptors and input spaces may be displayed on the interactive
computer terminal 30 to capture the information for the repair
order 28. The inclusion or exclusion of certain items of data in
the illustrated data structure of the repair order 28 are not
intended to be limiting, and any other field may be utilized, and
any of the fields shown may be eliminated, depending on particulars
of the dealer management system 20.
[0038] Once the repair order 28 is generated, the vehicle 26 is
passed to a service technician 32. The repair order 28 is accessed
from the dealer management system 20 via the computer terminal, and
the specified work is performed.
[0039] From time to time, the manufacturer 14 may become aware of
certain problems with vehicles currently in service. Once a problem
is detected and its resolution is finalized (necessary replacement
parts, work required, etc.), the manufacturer 14 may issue recall
notices 34 for specific vehicles or ranges of vehicles affected.
Various embodiments of the present disclosure contemplate a way to
timely notify the customer 24, the service manager 22 and/or the
technician 32 to ensure that the necessary corrective work is
performed, and one method for tracking the manufacturer recall
notices 34 is described as follows with reference to the flowchart
of FIG. 3.
[0040] Certain steps of the method are contemplated to be performed
by a remote recall tracking system 36 that is managed by the
tracking provider 16, which communicates with the dealer management
system 20 over the network 18. In this regard, the network 18 may
be public such as the Internet, or may also be a dedicated wide
area network. Such implementation of the recall tracking system 36
that is remote from the dealer management system 20 is presented by
way of example only and not of limitation. The following functions
of the recall tracking system 36 may also be implemented at the
site of the dealer 12, or even directly on the dealer management
system 20. However, the remote arrangement may be more appropriate
where the recall tracking system 36 is provided as a value-added
third party service to the dealer 12 as well as other subscribing
dealers.
[0041] The various steps of the method may be implemented as
computer-executable instructions that are performed by the recall
tracking system 36. Accordingly, the recall tracking system 36 may
be a data processing apparatus or computer server that is capable
of storing and executing those instructions based on certain
parameters provided thereto as inputs, and generating certain
outputs as results. Details pertaining to the specific hardware
devices and operating system software utilized in the recall
tracking system 36 are omitted, as those will be readily
ascertained by those having ordinary skill in the art.
[0042] The method for tracking the manufacturer recall notices 34
may include a step 200 of receiving the repair order 28 from the
dealer management system 20. As indicated above, the repair order
28 is tied to or associated with a particular vehicle
identification number 102. Further, this vehicle identification
number 102 corresponds to the specific one of the vehicles 26 for
which one or more maintenance services is assigned. As also
described above, the maintenance services are itemized in the
repair order 28 by their respective opcodes 114.
[0043] The receipt of the repair order 28 is preceded by a series
of preliminary operations 199 that results in the dealer management
system 20 transmitting the repair order 28 to the recall tracking
system 36 as an earlier counterpart step. Considering that the
method may be implemented as a service to the dealer 12, the
following steps discussed more fully below for tracking the
manufacturer recall notices 34 are intended to be performed on more
than just one repair order 28 stored on the dealer management
system 20. At any given point in time, there may be multiple repair
orders 28 being handled by the dealer 12, so multiple repair orders
28 can be processed in a single batch operation therefor. The
preliminary operations 199 are understood to be housekeeping tasks
for such batch operations.
[0044] Additional details pertaining to the preliminary operations
199 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIGS. 4A
and 4B. These steps may be implemented as an executable program
that is invoked by the operating system at predetermined intervals.
In one embodiment of the present disclosure, this interval may be
every twenty minutes, though it will be appreciated that any
suitable interval may be utilized. In order to connect to the
dealer management system 20, an external remote connection
management software is utilized. In a step 300, the connectivity
status thereof is confirmed. If no connection to the dealer
management system exists, the program in a step 302 first closes
any open instances of the remote connection management software,
and restarts the same. If no connection can be established, in a
step 304 an alert is transmitted to the system administrator of the
recall tracking system 36, the system is restarted, and the program
exits. However, if the connection can be established or if there
was a connection already established before any of the foregoing
actions, the program continues.
[0045] In the embodiment where the functionality of the program is
provided to the dealer 12 as a service, the status of the
subscription is confirmed. In a step 306, the program retrieves the
account status associated with the particular dealer 12 to verify
that payment for the services is current. If the account has been
suspended then in step 308 get another alert is transmitted to the
system administrator of the recall tracking system 36, and the
program exits.
[0046] As will be described in further detail below, the program
depends on updated data files and other executables; otherwise
errors may occur and data may become corrupted. Upon confirming the
subscription status of the dealer 12, there is a step 310 of
checking the availability of updated versions of all files. This
also confirms that the entire set of files necessary to the
functioning of the program is available. If necessary, in step 312
the program downloads any missing files and updates outdated files.
If the program is unable to so download the necessary files, in
step 314 another alert is transmitted to the system administrator
of the recall tracking system 36, and the program exits.
[0047] Various embodiments of the present disclosure contemplate
the generating of alerts upon the discovery of the manufacturer
recall notice 34. On a predetermined schedule, a summation of all
discovered recall notices for a given time period is generated, and
to the extent the program determines that any particular notice was
not properly resolved with a customer 24, those are highlighted for
review by the appropriate dealer staff. In step 316, the program
determines whether that summation process has been completed on
schedule, and if not, it is initiated in step 318.
[0048] Referring particularly to the flowchart of FIG. 4B, the
program continues with logging in to the dealer management system
20 according to step 320. In one exemplary embodiment, the recall
tracking system 36 establishes a terminal emulator connection to
the dealer management system 20. Via the terminal interface as
shown in FIG. 5, the program is capable of executing various
functions of the dealer management system 20 by providing inputs
thereto programmatically in such a way as to simulate human
interaction. The screenshot illustrates the report generating
function, which is contemplated to return all of the repair orders
28 open on the dealer management system 20. Further detailed
criteria of which open repair orders 28 to include in the report,
as well as the sorting, and the fields from each repair order 28 to
use, can be set. In the example shown, the repair order number 100,
the vehicle identification number 102, service manager identifier
112, the name of the customer 104, and the repair service opcode
114 are set to be included. Before initiating the request for the
report, pre-existing spreadsheets for earlier-run reports are
deleted in a step 322. The program continues with initiating the
request to the dealer management system 20 for the report according
to the parameters set through the terminal interface in a step
324.
[0049] With reference to FIG. 6, a report of the open repair orders
28 on the dealer management system 20 are returned as a spreadsheet
38. Per the parameters described above, a first column 38a
corresponds to the repair order number 100, a second column 38b
corresponds to the vehicle identification number 102, a third
column 38c corresponds to the service manager identifier, a fourth
column 38d corresponds to the customer name 104, a fifth column 38e
corresponds to the repair service opcode 114, and a sixth column
38f correspond to the repair service description 118. Each row thus
corresponds to a particular repair order 28, though multiple repair
service descriptions may be linked to a single repair order 28.
Then, in step 326, the spreadsheet 38 is read into an array memory
structure that is more readily manipulated. The recall tracking
system 36 is understood to maintain a separate data file with
repair orders 28 that have already been processed during an earlier
batch processing run. To the extent the current report includes
those repair orders 28, those are omitted from further processing
in step 328. If all of the repair orders 28 are removed, then the
program exits per step 330. The program continues with any
remaining open repair orders 28.
[0050] It will be appreciated that certain of the above-described
steps are particular to those embodiments in which the recall
tracking system 36 is remote from the dealer management system 20.
In alternative embodiments, the steps may not be necessary, or may
be performed, but with some modification. Those having ordinary
skill in the art will recognize any changes to the recall tracking
system 36 to implement the same under a different environment.
[0051] Referring again to the flowchart of FIG. 3, the method for
tracking manufacturer recall notices of vehicles continues with a
step 202 of transmitting a recall campaign retrieval request to a
manufacturer recall database 40 that stores the various
manufacturer recall notices 34. As utilized herein, the
manufacturer recall database 40 is understood to be any database
that stores recall information, whether it be maintained by the
manufacturer 14 or not. It is expressly contemplated that third
parties may collect and manage the recall information from various
manufacturers, and the method can include transmitting the recall
campaign retrieval requests thereto. The recall campaign retrieval
request is understood to include the particular vehicle
identification number 102 for which the request pertains. In this
regard, the following steps are understood to be performed for each
of the vehicle identification numbers of the remaining open repair
orders 28, though only a description of one iteration will be
provided herein.
[0052] The manufacturer recall database 40 may have a variety of
implementations, but considering its preferred, though optional
connection to the recall tracking system 36 via the Internet 18,
most likely it is a Web server to ensure maximum accessibility and
compatibility. The manufacturer recall notices 34 are understood to
be accessible only to select users such as the dealer 12, and so
access to the manufacturer recall database 40 may be restricted
with password-protected accounts. As a precursor to transmitting
the recall campaign retrieval request in step 202, there may be a
step of providing access credentials to the manufacturer recall
database 40 and logging in. As will be recognized by those having
ordinary skill in the art, interaction between a client and a Web
server takes place over the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), and
involves the transfer of various hypertext markup language (HTML)
files that are transmitted from the Web server in response to a
request from the client. In the context of the method for tracking
manufacturer recall notices, the vehicle identification number 102
currently being processed by the recall tracking system 36 is first
transmitted to the manufacturer recall database 40. Based upon a
query for the provided vehicle identification number 102 that is
transmitted through a HTML form element, a vehicle information
webpage 42 may be generated and transmitted to the recall tracking
system 36. An exemplary rendering of the vehicle information
webpage 42 is shown in FIG. 7, but in order for the recall tracking
system 36 to parse the data contained in the vehicle information
webpage 42, it is not necessary to render it thus.
[0053] The method continues with a step 204 of receiving the
manufacturer recall notices 34 from the manufacturer recall
database 40. As referenced herein, the manufacturer recall notices
34 are understood to correspond to the aforementioned vehicle
information webpage 42. The particular vehicle referenced in the
manufacturer recall notice 34 is understood to be subject to one or
more outstanding recall campaigns. An identification of the recall
issue and the corrective maintenance services required therefor are
included in the manufacturer recall notice 34.
[0054] The program makes certain assumptions about the various
formatting conventions of the vehicle information webpage 42, as
all other vehicle information webpages returned for different
vehicle identification numbers is understood to be similarly
arranged. By way of example only and not of limitation, one
implementation of the vehicle information webpage 42 may surround
the relevant contents with a <BODY> HTML tag. Within such
<BODY> tag, there may be a series of <DIV> tags
designating generic block-level elements. For the example vehicle
information webpage 42, the fifty-first <DIV> tag is
understood to include several <SPAN> elements, each which
contains one data element. The third <SPAN> element may
contain an identification of the vehicle model as correlated to the
queried vehicle identification number, the fifth <SPAN>
element may contain a vehicle year again as correlated to the
queried vehicle identification number, the tenth <SPAN>
elements may contain the date of first use, and the eleventh
<SPAN> element may contain a line-off date, i.e., the date
that particular vehicle came off the assembly line of the
manufacturer 14. Subsequent <SPAN> elements could be a
description 118 of the recall campaign, a status indicator, the
date on which the service was performed, and the repair order
number 100 under which the service was completed, in that order.
These series of <SPAN> elements may then be read into an
array for further processing, where the pertinent data describing
the details of the outstanding recall campaigns are derived.
Different data sets will be shown to describe the functionality and
data derivation steps involved.
[0055] A first example array may be comprised thus as shown:
TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 [0] [01] Safety Recall A0A--Accelerator Pad
Reinforcement Bar Installation [02] Completed [03] 08/28/11 [04]
Dealership Company [05] 04362 [06] Safety Recall 90L--Potential
Floor Mat Interference with Accelerator Pedal [07] Completed [08]
08/28/11 [09] Dealership Company [10] 04362 [11] Certain 2009-2010
Make Model Vehicles equipped with 2ZR-FE (1.8 Liter) Engines Brake
System Vacuum Port [12] Completed [13] 08/28/11 [14] Dealership
Company [15] 04362
[0056] Beginning with the last array element and proceeding in
descending order, each array element (i.e., the data contained
within a <SPAN> element in the vehicle information webpage
42) is checked whether it includes the terms "Not Completed." In
this example, there is no such array element, and so it is not
necessary to proceed further.
[0057] A second example array may be comprised thus:
TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 [0] [1] Safety Recall B0M--Certain 2004 and
2005 Model Year Vehicles--1MZ-FE/3MZ-FE V6 Engine Cranks [2] Not
Completed [3] Safety Recall B0A--Certain 2004-2006 model year
vehicles Driver's Side Floor Carpet Cover and Retention Clip [4]
Not Completed [5] Interim Safety Recall A0M--Certain 2005 through
2006 Model Year Vehicles Brake Master Cylinder Cup Replacement [6]
Not Completed
[0058] It is understood that not all sets of <SPAN> elements
are arranged in the same order, and specific number or multiples of
specific numbers cannot necessarily be assigned a specific field.
In the examples above, whereas in Table 1, a set of five
<SPAN> or array elements pertained to one recall campaign (a
first element for a description, a second element for completion
status, a third element for completion date, a fourth element for
the servicing dealer, and a fifth element for the repair order
number) in Table 2, only a set of two <SPAN> or array
elements pertain to one recall campaign (a first element for a
description, and a second element for completion status).
[0059] Continuing with the example of Table 2, once a "Not
Completed" is found, the subsequent array element is checked
whether it includes the terms "interim" or "Preliminary Notice." If
so, it is ignored, and proceeds with the subsequent array element.
In the example above, array element [6] includes "Not Completed,"
then array element [5] is found to include "Interim." This is
ignored, and continues with array element [4], which likewise
includes "Not Completed." Because the next array element [3] does
not contain "interim" or "Preliminary Notice," the contents thereof
are stored for subsequent use. The conditions are the same for
array elements [2] and [1], so the contents of array element [1]
are stored for subsequent use.
[0060] In one embodiment, the vehicle information webpage 42 does
not include a more simplified descriptor or identifier such as a
recall campaign code, and only the entire description of the recall
campaign is provided. The recall tracking system 36 locally
maintains a campaign descriptor table 44 as shown in FIG. 8 that
associates recall campaign codes to descriptors. A search on the
derived descriptor is conducted in the campaign descriptor table
44, and the corresponding recall campaign code is stored in the
array. If a particular description is not found, the recall
campaign code is indicated as N/A. The array shown in Table 2 now
becomes Table 3:
TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 3 [0] [1] Interim Safety Recall A0M--Certain
2005 through 2006 Model Year Vehicles Brake Master Cylinder Cup
Replacement [2] A0M [3] Safety Recall B0A--Certain 2004-2006 model
year vehicles Driver's Side Floor Carpet Cover and Retention Clip
[4] B0A
[0061] The data in the array, together with the associated repair
order number 100, the vehicle identification number 102, and the
dealer service manager identifier 112 for that particular recall
campaign are stored in a recall campaign alert table 46. An example
thereof is shown in FIG. 9; it will be recognized that the data
contained in the illustrated example is not consistent with the
data included in the tables above, as those were presented only for
the purpose of simplifying the explanation of the operations
involved with parsing the vehicle information webpage 42.
Thereafter, the repair order number 100 is stored in the
aforementioned data file that maintains duplicate or already
processed repair orders 28 and associated repair order numbers
100.
[0062] It will be understood that the foregoing description of the
parsing of the vehicle information webpage 42 is specific to its
formatting, and have been presented as one example of possibly
many. Different manufacturers 14 may format and present the same
information differently, and modifications to the HTML elements
that are searched and the content delineated thereby may likewise
be expected. Further, even with the same formatting, there may be a
variety of different ways in which to derive the aforementioned
information from the vehicle information webpage 42. Those having
ordinary skill in the art will readily ascertain those alternative
modalities.
[0063] The recall campaign codes are understood to correspond to
the repair service opcodes, and so the existing open repair orders
28 are checked to see if the returned repair campaign code(s)
was/were already added thereto. For the embodiments where the
entire description of the repair campaign is utilized, it is
understood that this step encompasses the checking of such
descriptions. If it had not been included, the method continues
with a step 206 of generating an alert notification to the service
manager 22 or any other dealership personnel that the particular
corrective maintenance services have been omitted, and that some
remedial action should be taken.
[0064] Referring to the screenshot of FIG. 10, the recall tracking
system 36 directs the dealer management system 20 to generate a
message thereon alerting the service manager 22 to the omitted
corrective maintenance services that are specified as a part of the
manufacturer recall notices 34. As shown, the repair order number
100, the vehicle identification number 102, the customer name 104,
the vehicle make, model, and year 110, and the repair service
opcodes 114 and accompanying descriptions 118 are included in the
message. In addition, or as an alternative, the recall tracking
system 36 may generate a standalone e-mail message delivered via
the Internet 18. Where a standard e-mail message alert is
transmitted, certain personally identifiable information may be
removed to comply with privacy restrictions. More generally,
however, the alert notification is understood to encompass any
notification modality by which the dealer staff may be informed of
recall campaigns that remain outstanding for a vehicle.
[0065] Other embodiments contemplate additional functions that may
be invoked on the dealer management system. When omitted corrective
maintenance services are detected, it may be automatically added to
the repair order 28 in question without further input from the
service manager 22. Alternatively, the service manager 22 can be
prompted whether or not to revise the repair order 28. In many
cases, the service manager 22 will provide a first set of
instruction inputs via the terminal 30 to add the omitted
corrective maintenance services. In some circumstances, however, it
may be necessary to postpone the service, as the customer 24 may
not have the time, the needed parts are unavailable, the parts and
repair procedures have not yet been finalized by the manufacturer
14, and so forth. When the repair order 28 is not revised to
include the corrective maintenance services, these stated reasons
can be added. The stated reason, along with an identification of
which corrective maintenance services were refused or postponed,
can be logged for future auditing/performance reviews. Along these
lines, the printed repair order 28 provided to the customer 24 may
include a disclaimer when corrective maintenance services are
refused or postponed.
[0066] While the above description of the method for tracking the
manufacturer recall notices 34 utilizes the repair order 28 as a
conduit between the dealer 12, the manufacturer 14, and the
tracking provider 16, it will be recognized that other embodiments
need not be limited thereto. For example, an appointment scheduling
system for the service department, to the extent that a vehicle
identification number is utilized, can also search for outstanding
manufacturer recall notices 34 and schedule the corrective
maintenance services in the same manner discussed above.
[0067] Referring now to the flowchart of FIG. 11, the present
disclosure envisions a method for generating notifications of
recalls of products to the customers 24. Again, the description
will be in the context of vehicles that are particularly identified
by a vehicle identification number, though it will be appreciated
that any other types of products may be handled in accordance with
the contemplated method. Generally, this method is directed to
utilizing the above-described technique of discovering outstanding
recall campaigns from the manufacturer recall database 40 in order
to proactively notify potential customers 24 that may not yet had
any contact with the dealer 12 with informative mailings. The
method begins with a step 400 of receiving a customer list 48, an
exemplary data structure of which is shown in FIG. 12. There is
understood to be a vehicle identification number field 48a for
storing the vehicle identification number 102, a customer name
field 48b for storing the customer name 100, and a customer mailing
address field 48c for storing the customer address 106. The
particular make, model, and year to which the vehicle
identification number pertains may also be included in separate
fields, though in some embodiments this data is derived from the
vehicle identification number 102 and are not reproduced. The
customer list 48 may be provided by the manufacturer 14 and
includes owners of vehicles specified by the vehicle identification
numbers 102 who are located within a predetermined distance of the
dealer 12.
[0068] The customer list 48 and more specifically, the vehicle
identification numbers 102 therein, are used to download
information on outstanding recall campaigns from the manufacturer
recall database 40 utilizing the techniques discussed above. This
includes a step 402 of transmitting a recall campaign retrieval
request to the manufacturer recall database 40. In response to this
request, the manufacturer recall database 40 transmits the
manufacturer recall notices 34 as set forth in the submitted
vehicle identification number 102. The manufacturer recall notices
34 may also include one or more corrective actions that address the
recall campaign indicated therein. The recall tracking system 36
continues with a step 404 of receiving such manufacturer recall
notices 34. These two steps are understood to correspond to the
aforementioned steps 202 and 204, and the details discussed in
relation thereto, including the parsing of the vehicle information
webpage 42, are understood to be applicable here.
[0069] In accordance with step 406, the received manufacturer
recall notices 34 are then stored in a customer recall alert list
50, which is understood to be comprised of the data from the
customer list 48 merged with the manufacturer recall notices 34.
Since the customer list 48 is indexed with the vehicle
identification number 102, so is the customer recall alert list 50.
This list may be similar to the recall campaign alert table 46
mentioned above, but additionally including the customer address
106, as mailings are generated therefrom.
[0070] The method can be implemented as a service provided by the
tracking provider 16 to the dealer 12, prior to receiving the
customer list, after receiving the customer recall alert list 50,
or anytime between, several housekeeping type tasks may be
performed by an executable application running on the recall
tracking system 36. One contemplated embodiment charges the dealer
12 for the number of mailings generated, and the verification of
payment for the particular number of mailings requested may be
made. Furthermore, the manufacturer 14 may issue some recall
notices for certain climate regions, while not for others. It will
be recognized that manufacturers 14 often divide dealerships into
two segments--"cold weather" and "warm weather." Because which
specific recalls will be honored by the manufacturer 14 depends on
the status of the dealer 12, a determination thereof is made. Where
the service is configured to handle multiple manufacturers 14, the
particular make of the vehicles for which the notices are generated
is also confirmed. The dealer 12 has the option to set the monetary
value of the recommended corrective maintenance services so as to
make the best use of the mailings, which can be expensive depending
on the delivery modality used. The campaign descriptor table 42
mentioned above is read into an array for easier manipulation. If
the dealer 12 has prepared mailings previously with the service, a
newly generated customer recall alert list 50 is merged with the
earlier version. The order in which the steps are performed is not
critical.
[0071] Now, with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 13, the details
of the additional post-processing applied to the customer recall
alert list 50 to prepare for the mailings to the customers 24 will
be considered. The customer recall alert list 50 is sorted in
alpha-numeric order in step 500, and read into another array for
easier manipulation. Thereafter, the customer addresses are
converted to uppercase in a step 501.
[0072] An example customer recall alert list 50 is shown in FIG.
14, and data elements for a given vehicle identification number 102
are each stored in a separate column. A first column 50a includes
the various vehicle identification numbers 102, a second column 50b
includes the first names of the customers 24, and a third column
50c includes the last names of the customers 24. A fourth column
50d includes the year and model of the vehicles corresponding to
the vehicle identification number 102. A fifth column 50e includes
the mailing address, a sixth column 50f includes the mailing
address city, a seventh column 50g includes the mailing address
state, and an eighth column 50h includes the mailing address zip
code. As another means of contacting the customer 24, there is
ninth column 50i for the e-mail address of the customer 24.
[0073] It is presently contemplated that the recall tracking system
36 is capable of handling up to four recall campaigns
simultaneously for a given vehicle identification number 102. This
limit is by way of example only and not of limitation, and the
method may be modified to simultaneously accommodate more or less
recall campaigns. Each of the recall campaigns have an associated
cost estimate, and a tenth column 50j includes a monetary sum of
each of the recall campaigns. Eleventh through fourteenth columns
50k-50n includes the respective repair service opcodes 114, while
fifteenth through eighteenth columns 50o-50r includes the titles of
the recall notices associated therewith. Similarly, nineteenth
through twenty second columns 50s-50v includes a more detailed
description of the recall notices that more fully explain the
necessary work and the potential hazards. A twenty third column 50w
defines whether any of the recommended maintenance services would
require a car rental due to the extensive time needed for
completion. A twenty fourth column 50x indicates whether an oil
change is included, a twenty fifth column 50y indicates whether an
engine coolant change is included, and a twenty sixth column 50y
indicates whether fuel is to be topped off. The level of
availability of parts necessary to complete the maintenance service
are included in a twenty seventh column 50aa. The labor required to
complete the maintenance service can be characterized by a low time
estimate, included in a twenty eighth column 50bb, and a high time
estimate, included in a twenty ninth column 50cc. This additional
data is understood to be derived from the aforementioned campaign
descriptor table 42.
[0074] Following step 502, the format of the customer names in the
customer recall alert list 50 are corrected in a step 504. This
includes analyzing the first and last names to determine whether
any should be combined into a single last name, such as the case
when the customer is a corporate entity. The first name and the
last name are matched against a flag list including such words as
"Company," "Institution," "Inc." and so forth. Those having
ordinary skill in the art will recognize other such words that are
suitable for combining. Where those words are found in the last
name, then the corresponding first name, which may be the unique
name of the company, is merged with the last name. For example,
with "ABC" as a first name, and "Company" as a last name, the last
name is modified to be "ABC Company" and the first name is left
blank. This combination process is also employed where an ampersand
character (&) is in the last name column 50c. Where there is no
customer name indicated, a default text of "OWNER" is added to the
last name column 50c, and the name of the vehicle is added to the
first name column 50b. The clean-up process also removes all
trailing and leading spaces, not only from the name columns
50b-50c, but the other columns as well.
[0075] After correcting the formatting of the customer names, the
customer recall alert list 50 is sorted and grouped in accordance
with a step 506. This step more particularly involves searching for
rows having certain values in the tenth column 50j, the monetary
sum of the recall campaigns. In some cases, the tenth column 50j
may indicate "not yet available," meaning that while the campaign
is expected to take place and be honored by the manufacturer 14 in
the future that time has not yet come. In other cases, the tenth
column 50j may indicate "Delete," meaning that the recall campaign
has expired, is no long applicable, or the customer 24 otherwise
does not need to be notified thereof. These rows are subsequently
removed from the customer recall alert list 50 from which the
mailings are generated. In some embodiments, however, where the
customer recall alert list 50 is a conventional spreadsheet file,
the values in those selected rows are copied to a different sheet
within the same spreadsheet file. It is understood that where there
are multiple recall campaigns, any one of the cost estimates for a
specific recall campaign may indicate "not yet available." In this
case, all of the outstanding recall campaigns are flagged as
unavailable, and removed from the customer recall alert list 50.
Those having ordinary skill in the art will be able to develop
alternative logic for handling different scenarios. For example, it
may also be possible to remove just the unavailable recall
campaigns, while retaining those recall campaigns that are
active.
[0076] Next, in step 508, the availability of parts necessary for
the corrective maintenance services are assigned for each vehicle
identification number 102 in the customer recall alert list 50.
Prior to this step, the titles and descriptors of the recall
campaigns may have been retrieved for populating the appropriate
fields in the customer recall alert list 50, based upon the
specified opcodes 114. The level of parts availability may be one
of six: at the first level, no parts are needed; at the second
level, additional parts are needed, but are in stock or are readily
available within a day or two; at the third level, the needed parts
are expected within one week; at the fourth level, the needed parts
are expected within two weeks; at the fifth level, the needed parts
are fluctuating in availability, (sometimes taking just one day to
return to stock, or multiple weeks in the worst case); and at the
sixth level, the car is required to be brought to the dealer 12,
meaning that an inspection is necessary in order to determine which
parts are needed. In cases of multiple recall campaigns, the
highest of the levels, i.e., the worst case scenario, is indicated.
For example, if one recall campaign has a level two availability
(parts expected within a day), while another recall campaign has a
level six availability (car needed), then the field 50aa will
indicate "Car Needed."
[0077] Based upon the total values of the recall campaigns
calculated and stored in the tenth column 50j of the customer
recall alert list 50, low value campaigns are moved to a separate
list or spreadsheet in a step 510. The threshold for what
constitutes a "low value" is determined by the dealer 12, and as
indicated above, is inputted at the initial stages of the method.
With some campaigns, the value may be significantly high if the
campaign is deemed applicable to the vehicle after an inspection is
conducted. For purposes of calculating the value of the recall
campaign, such conditional amounts may be ignored. However, under
such circumstances, a notification of that campaign is still
provided to the customer 24, so long as the other affected
campaigns exceed the threshold.
[0078] In a step 512, the customer recall alert list 50 is sorted
in accordance with the preferred zip codes, as the dealer 12 may
desire to target certain locales over others based on general
demographics and the like. Up to ten preferred zipcodes may be
specified, though this example is arbitrary and is not intended to
be limiting.
[0079] With one embodiment being a subscription-based service that
is paid for on a per mailing basis, the number of rows/vehicle
identification numbers 102 in the customer recall alert list 50 may
exceed the amount for which the tracking provider system has been
paid. These overages may be stored in yet another separate list or
spreadsheet in step 514, to be handled at another time upon
additional payment.
[0080] The method continues with a step 516 in which letters
addressed to the customers 24 using the mailing address stored in
the customer recall alert list 50 are generated. In each letter,
the details of the recall campaign(s) as also set forth in the
title and description stored in the customer recall alert list 50
are included, emphasizing the importance of having the work
performed. Furthermore, an offer to perform complimentary services
such as multi-point vehicle inspections and other perks may be
incorporated into the letter. As an alternative contact modality,
the customers 24 may be contacted via telephone by service
personnel referring to the information in the customer recall alert
list 50. Along these lines, the customer recall alert list 50 may
be transmitted to the service manager 22 via e-mail or other
modalities.
[0081] The particulars shown herein are by way of example only for
purposes of illustrative discussion, and are presented in the cause
of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily
understood description of the principles and conceptual aspects of
the various embodiments set forth in the present disclosure. In
this regard, no attempt is made to show any more detail than is
necessary for a fundamental understanding of the different features
of the various embodiments, the description taken with the drawings
making apparent to those skilled in the art how these may be
implemented in practice.
* * * * *